Former professional wrestling executive Linda McMahon has closed the gap in the Connecticut Senate race to just 10 points, according to a new Quinnipiac survey released this morning. Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, running in place of retiring Democrat Chris Dodd, had led by 17 points just a few weeks ago and 20 points in June.
McMahon has closed what was a wide gap among independent voters last month. She now leads independents by a 46%-44% margin over Blumenthal, who had held a 19-point lead among that bloc in July.
McMahon will first need to get past Tuesday's GOP primary against Rob Simmons and Peter Schiff. Simmons has rejoined the race after suspending his campaign following the state party's endorsement of McMahon, who now leads with 47% to 30% for Simmons and 14% for Schiff. McMahon led 52%-25% over Simmons in mid-July.
"The McMahon-Blumenthal Senate race in Connecticut could be a real smackdown, as the Republican has the money and momentum, cutting into Blumenthal's lead month to month," said Quinnipiac poll director Douglas Schwartz. "But as McMahon focuses on Blumenthal, she better watch her back. Rob Simmons has shown surprising strength among Republican voters after jumping back into the primary contest barely two weeks ago. But it might be too little too late for Simmons."
The Quinnipiac survey of 1,299 registered voters and 1,003 likely Republican primary voters was conducted July 29-Aug. 2.
Kyle Trygstad is a Washington correspondent for RealClearPolitics. Email him at: kyle@realclearpolitics.com. Follow him on Twitter @KyleTrygstad.
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